Danger of heroin on display, couple found high with child in back seat

Danger of heroin on display, couple found high with child in back seat

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Updated: 11:16 AM CDT Sep 9, 2016

EAST LIVERPOOL, Ohio —

Authorities in East Liverpool, Ohio shared photos of an arrest on Wednesday of two people accused of being high on heroin with a 4-year-old in the back seat of their car.

Officer Kevin Thompson said he was behind a Ford Explorer that was driving recklessly on Wednesday afternoon. He said the vehicle was near a school bus dropping off children when it braked hard and skidded to stop.

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Officer Thompson approached the vehicle and found the driver, James Accord, 47, with "pinpoint pupils," bobbing his head back and forth. According to the police report, Accord muttered to the officer that he was taking his passenger, Rhonda Pasek, 50, to the hospital.

Pasek was unconscious and turning blue, Thompson said, while right behind her was her 4-year-old son in a car seat.

Thompson reached in to turn off the vehicle and attempted to open Pasek's airway until emergency help arrived on the scene, authorities said.

A folded piece of paper containing a powdery pink substance later identified as heroin, was found on Peak's lap, according to authorities.

Columbia County Children's Services was called to care for the 4-year-old boy.

The City of East Liverpool shared the police report and photos from the scene on Facebook Thursday afternoon with this caption:

"We feel it necessary to show the other side of this horrible drug. We feel we need to be a voice for the children caught up in this horrible mess. This child can't speak for himself but we are hopeful his story can convince another user to think twice about injecting this poison while having a child in their custody."

According to the Centers for Disease Control, deaths caused by heroin overdose in Ohio rose from 697 in 2012 to 983 in 2013. The 18.3% increase contributed to Ohio having the second highest number of overdose deaths in the country.

"We are well aware that some may be offended by these images and for that we are truly sorry, but it is time that the non-drug using public sees what we are now dealing with on a daily basis."